Pump intake weed shearing structure



June 25, 1963 K. H. BURGIN 3,094,965

PUMP INTAKE WEED SHEARING STRUCTURE Filed June 19, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IEI 5,-

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HNVENTDR KERMIT H. BUREHN M hmywazmm A3 TURNEY June 25, 1963 K. H. BURGIN 3,094,965

PUMP INTAKE WEED SHEARING STRUCTURE Filed June 19, 1962 2' Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY United States Patent Ofiice 3,094,965 Patented June 25, 1963 This invention relates to a mechanical device for preventing clogging of a screen grid across the water intake opening through which a body of water is taken with a rather rapid flow and in a large volume. In the present form of the invention, it is applied to the underside of a boat hull, wherein water may be taken through the grille inserted over a hole provided in the hull, to the end that any weeds or trash tending to collect across openings Through the grille will be sheared off by knives recipro- Gating across those openings.

A primary purpose of the invention is to provide a simple mechanism which may be applied readily to a Water intake with knives mounted on the exterior side of the grille to cut off the weeds which tend to enter the Openings of the grille, so that there will be no drag of a collection of weeds along the under side of the boat hull.

A further important object of the invention is to provide an exceedingly simple structure which may be made at a relatively low cost of manufacture, and may be applied to boats with a minimum amount of labor and cost. These and many other objects and advantages of the Invention will become apparent to those versed in the art in the following description of one particular form of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- FIG. 1 is a view in top plan and partial section of a structure embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view in vertical section on the line 22 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a vertical section on the line 3-3 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a vertical section on the line 44 in FIG. 1, and

FIG. 5 is a detail in vertical section on the line 5-5 in FIG. 4.

A grille generally designated by the numeral is #ormed preferably out of a single piece of metal to have an encircling flange 11 provided to fit against the under gide of the hull 12 of a boat around the margin of an Opening 13 through that hull. An upstanding wall 14 rein shown as being rectangular in shape extends above the level of the flange '11, FIGS. 2 and 3, to provide a connection for a water conduit (not shown). The under Side of the grille 10 is slotted to provide water entering Spaces 15, herein shown as five in number, the spaces being provided between intervening bars 16, preferably fllnning longitudinally of the boat hull 12. The top faces of these bars 16 are in a common plane, and below the top edge 17 of the wall 14.

Preferably although not necessarily so, the plane is Inclined downwardly and rearwardly in relation to the under side of the boat hull 12, FIG. 3.

A plurality of knives, herein shown as five in number and indicated by the numeral 18 in each instance, are interconnected by their outermost end portions by drive bars 19 and 20. These bars 19 and 20 extend across the top end portions respectively of the knives 18.

On each of the bars 19 and 20 there is fixed a bracket 22 to which are rockably secured arms 23 and 24. These arms 23 and 24 are normally urged to rock one toward the other by means of compression springs 25 and 26 respectively, bearing by their opposite ends against a portion of the bracket 22 and upper portions of the arms 23 and 24, FIG. 4.

A drive shaft 27 enters through the wall 14 from one side, and herein shown as a forward side, FIGS. 1 and 3, and extends across over and above the knives 18 to carry a pair of eccentric members 28 and 29 fixed to the shaft 27, and located to be between the upturned arms 23 and 24 in each instance. The arms 23 and 24 have to be spread apart in order to permit the entrance of the eccentrics 28 and 29 therebetween as indicated in FIG. 4.

The rear end of the shaft 27 is journaled as at 30, FIG. 1, in the rear side of the wall 14. The bars 19 and 20 are spring urged to maintain the knives 18 in sliding contacts with the outsides of the bar 16 and also of the margins 31 and 32 of the grille which are in the common plane of the upper sides of the bar 16. The means in the present showing for yieldingly maintaining the knives in that contact in sliding action, constitutes a pair of L-shaped springs 33, 34 fixed to the side wall 14 and coming down and bearing elastically against the bar 19, and a like pair of L-shaped members 35 and 36 fixed to the wall 14 and bearing downwardly elastically against the topside of the bar 20.

In operation, the shaft 27 (being connected to some driving source not shown) when rotating will rotate the front and rear eccentrics 28 and 29 to cause the bars 19 and 20 to reciprocate and thus reciprocate the interconnected knives 18 across the bar 16 with an overlapping travel in each stroke of the margins 31 and 32, one knife 18 being shown as overlapping the margin 32 in FIG. 1. In this Way, a shearing action is set up between the edges of the knives 18 and the upper corners of the bar 16 and the edge portions 31 and 32. The entire assembly of the knives 18 is maintained in a fixed transverse line of travel by reason of the bars 19 and 20 abutting shoulders 37 and 38 provided across the grille.

In case there is such a mass of trash or weeds attempting to enter between the bar 16 through the spaces 15, as will stop or tend to stop the travel of the knives 18, the springs 25 and 26 serve as safety factors in permitting the arms 23 and 24 as the case may be to retract as the eccentrics 28 and 29 tend to continue their rotary travel. Operation will be normally effectively stopped until such stoppage by the trash or weeds is manually removed by punching downwardly from the inside.

While I have herein shown and described my invention in the one particular form, it is obvious that structural changes may be employed without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I therefore do not desire to be limited to that precise form beyond the limitations which may be imposed by the following claims.

I claim:

1. The combination with a protective water intake grille having a plurality of spaced apart bars between and past which intake water may flow from an inner, discharge side of the bars,

said bars having faces in a common plane;

of a plurality of knives extending along the lengths of said bars; and

means reciprocating said knives in unison across said bar faces setting up a shearing action therebetween;

said knives being double edged and diagonally positioned across said bars;

tie bars, one attached across each of opposite ends of said knives requiring them to reciprocate in unison; and

shoulders carried transversely and at the ends of said bars of said grille;

said shoulders limiting longitudinal travel of the knives.

2. The structure of claim 1 in which there are spring members carried by said grille yieldingly hearing on said tie bars and urging said knives against said grille bars; and

said shoulders maintaining said tie bars in parallel alignment.

3. The structure of claim 1 in which said reciprocating means comprises a pair of spaced apart abutment posts carried by each of said tie bars and extending therefrom;

an eccentric Wheel between the posts of each of said pairs;

and a shaft eccentrically carrying said wheels.

4. The structure of claim 3 in which said posts are, swingably carried by said tie bars to swing toward and away from each other in each of said pairs; and there is a spring urging each post in a common pair, one toward the other and compressively bearing upon the eccentric wheel therebetween.

2,496,359 Rymann Feb. 7, 1950 Smith Feb. 24, 1953' 

1. THE COMBINATION WITH A PROTECTIVE WATER INTAKE GRILLE HAVING A PLURALITY OF SPACED APART BARS BETWEEN AND PAST WHICH INTAKE WATER MAY FLOW FROM AN INNER, DISCHARGE SIDE OF THE BARS, SAID BARS HAVING FACES IN A COMMON PLANE; OF A PLURALITY OF KNIVES EXTENDING ALONG THE LENGTHS OF SAID BARS; AND MEANS RECIPROCATING SAID KNIVES IN UNISON ACROSS SAID BAR FACES SETTING UP A SHEARING ACTION THEREBETWEEN; 